BIONEINE® is a high quality source of the natural compound L-ergothioneine, which is found throughout the living world from plants to man, including the well-known horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus), one of the oldest living animal species on Earth. L-Ergothioneine is synthesized only by bacteria and fungi and is absorbed by humans through the diet.

L-Ergothioneine is incorporated in the skin tissue, thanks to a specific organic cation transporter called OCTN1 or ETT [1,2], which is expressed by dermal fibroblasts and epidermal keratinocytes [3,4]. At a sub-cellular level, L-ergothioneine is widely distributed and is present in particular in mitochondria [5]

L-Ergothioneine is highly water soluble, stable towards oxygen and has been shown to trap or disactivate strong oxidizing species, such as singlet oxygen, peroxynitrite anion and hypochlorous acid [6-11]. Moreover, L-ergothioneine chelates metals and prevents pro-oxidant effects of copper [12-14]. Consistently, the protective effects of L-ergothioneine against oxidative stress have been demonstrated in numerous studies [15-16] and its involvement in the network of antioxidant defenses has been evidenced in skin cells [3,4,17-19].

It is well documented that chronic exposure to stress factors such as UV radiations, pathogens, polluants, and age-associated mitochondrial dysfunction induce oxidative stress which results in progressive loss of cell structural and functional integrity, and then to tissue damage.

Therefore, BIONEINE®, as a source of the physiological cytoprotectant L-ergothioneine, is a particularly interesting active ingredient to be incorporated into cosmetic formulations to contribute to a healthy skin.